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225th out of 558 books
—
445 voters
She Makes It Look Easy: A Novel
Ariel Baxter has just moved into the neighborhood of her dreams. The chaos of domestic life and the loneliness of motherhood, however, moved with her. Then she meets her neighbor, Justine Miller. Justine ushers Ariel into a world of clutter-free houses, fresh-baked bread, homemade crafts, neighborhood playdates, and organization techniques designed to make marriage better...more
Paperback, 335 pages
Published
June 1st 2011
by David C. Cook
(first published January 1st 2011)
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When Ariel and her family move into a new neighborhood across town, she’s hopeful that great friendships, new opportunities and a new life are just around the corner, but life with three boys and a husband who’s constantly traveling has her more than frazzled. That’s why she’s so excited to be welcomed into the neighborhood and taken under the wing of the community’s most “together” woman, Justine. Justine is not only a great mom and wife but she’s super organized and creative, the woman that al...more
I received this book to review with the CFBA tour. I have been sick on an off for about 7 weeks now and reading got behind. I found this book to be interesting. Its another case of things are not always what they seem. From the outside Justine looks to have everything and be everything other women want to be. She is organised to a fault and even teaches other women how to be organised in their lives, homes and everything they do. Arial is a busy mother of three boys and feels her life is in chao...more
One of the words that can cause a person more discontent than any other is “comparison.” Especially in women we see this so often as we compare children’s behavior, organization skills, exercise routines – even Bible study habits. But this book points out that “the grass is NOT always greener on the other side of the fence” and that “what you see isn’t always what it appears.”
When Ariel moves into a new neighborhood she is flattered and thrilled when the her neighbor, the woman who is so togethe...more
When Ariel moves into a new neighborhood she is flattered and thrilled when the her neighbor, the woman who is so togethe...more
Two very different lives and both wishing to have some aspect of another's. Yet how very true is the saying, "The grass isn't always greener on the other side."
Take Ariel Baxter, busy mother of three boys and a wandering labrador named Lucky. Her schedule involves so much that Ariel can barely stay on top of things, like getting organized, remembering to not only have dinner on the table by the time her husband David gets home, but to make sure she has gone shopping so she has the ingredients. N...more
Take Ariel Baxter, busy mother of three boys and a wandering labrador named Lucky. Her schedule involves so much that Ariel can barely stay on top of things, like getting organized, remembering to not only have dinner on the table by the time her husband David gets home, but to make sure she has gone shopping so she has the ingredients. N...more
She makes it look easy - that's just what I think when I'm surrounded by all of these perfect Pinterest-loving mamas. So this book seemed like a natural choice to me.
The book is written in the perspective of two ladies (Ms. Perfect and Ms. Chaos essentially). As the book begins, I could relate to the chaotic character who is yearning to get it all together and begins taking notes her perfect neighbor. However, the book begins to take a different theme as it continues. The perfect character begi...more
The book is written in the perspective of two ladies (Ms. Perfect and Ms. Chaos essentially). As the book begins, I could relate to the chaotic character who is yearning to get it all together and begins taking notes her perfect neighbor. However, the book begins to take a different theme as it continues. The perfect character begi...more
MY REVIEW:
This is a fascinating storyline that gives you one story from multiple angles. It took me a moment to get used to the story going back and forth between the perspectives of the two main characters, but after the first few chapters I really enjoyed it. This back-and-forth format brought to life the depth of each character in a way that was so easy to relate to and I found myself sympathizing with various emotions from each person. She Makes It Look Easy expertly uncovers and opens for a...more
This is a fascinating storyline that gives you one story from multiple angles. It took me a moment to get used to the story going back and forth between the perspectives of the two main characters, but after the first few chapters I really enjoyed it. This back-and-forth format brought to life the depth of each character in a way that was so easy to relate to and I found myself sympathizing with various emotions from each person. She Makes It Look Easy expertly uncovers and opens for a...more
As young married woman dreaming of buying her first house and making friends in her new neighborhood, I was intrigued by the description of “She Makes it Look Easy”. Better yet, the book is set in an imaginary suburb of Charlotte, right outside of where I call home in North Carolina!
Ariel moves into her dream neighborhood and begins making friends with her too good to be true neighbor Justine. Fascinated with Justine’s organization skills and seemingly perfect life, Ariel does whatever Justine t...more
Ariel moves into her dream neighborhood and begins making friends with her too good to be true neighbor Justine. Fascinated with Justine’s organization skills and seemingly perfect life, Ariel does whatever Justine t...more
This was a very disappointing book! At the beginning I thought Justine was a little off, it was like she wanted Ariel to be her little protege` with all the organizational, being a better Mom skills, and recipes. It turned out that Ariel and her husband David were actually the better grounded couple and Justine had the nerve to use that against her when her husband lost his job, because they were swimming in debt. What annoyed me the most about this book is that adultery was not put in it's prop...more
Justine, mom to 2 young girls whose best friend has moved away from the house behind her finds that her life lacks pizzazz. Most people around her seem to think she has it all together but there are those who truly know her best.
Ariel, mom to 3 young boys moves into the house vacated by Justines best friend could use some advice when it comes to being organized and finds the new neighbor has just the plan.
The 2 become friends finding themselves not just talking across the fence but discovering t...more
Ariel, mom to 3 young boys moves into the house vacated by Justines best friend could use some advice when it comes to being organized and finds the new neighbor has just the plan.
The 2 become friends finding themselves not just talking across the fence but discovering t...more
When I read The Mailbox, I raved about it for days. Loved the whole idea! Then I couldn't believe it when I found out Marybeth was coming out with a second book! How awesome is that I ask you!
She Makes It Look Easy is a bit more thought provoking and really hits home in a lot of areas. Especially for women I think. We all think each other has it so much easier or at least I think everyone else has it easier and does it so much better than I do. However, appearances aren't always what they seem....more
She Makes It Look Easy is a bit more thought provoking and really hits home in a lot of areas. Especially for women I think. We all think each other has it so much easier or at least I think everyone else has it easier and does it so much better than I do. However, appearances aren't always what they seem....more
Ariel Baxter has always dreamed of living in Essex Falls. The suburbian life woos her into thinking she can have the perfect life. The perfect house. The white picket fence. The adoring husband. The well-behaved children. The perfect friends. An organized life is what she desires.
And Justine appears to have it all. But does she?
And will Ariel fall into Justine's trap? Or will she find the courage to stand for what is truly right in life?
Marybeth Whalen has written another incredible novel. I con...more
And Justine appears to have it all. But does she?
And will Ariel fall into Justine's trap? Or will she find the courage to stand for what is truly right in life?
Marybeth Whalen has written another incredible novel. I con...more
Ariel Baxter is very thrilled to be moving into the neighborhood of her dreams. A photographer with a growing business, she anticipates that her life will be just about perfect now.
When she meets her new neighbor, Justine Miller, she learns all about perfection. Or thinks she does. This very organized housewife/mother becomes symbolic of Ariel's dreams of perfection, and she is quite happy to follow Justine's lead. To choose her as a role model.
But things are not always what they seem, and what...more
When she meets her new neighbor, Justine Miller, she learns all about perfection. Or thinks she does. This very organized housewife/mother becomes symbolic of Ariel's dreams of perfection, and she is quite happy to follow Justine's lead. To choose her as a role model.
But things are not always what they seem, and what...more
When I downloaded "She Makes it Look Easy," I half expected an easy romance that would be too cheesy to finish. Instead, I was treated to a tender story that I finished in one day. A romance, yes, but more importantly a reaffirmation about being true to your beliefs, your family and to God. The message is clear without being preachy. The main character Ariel wants to have the perfect neighbor friendship - to be more like her perfect neighbor Justine - than the disorganized mother of three rowdy...more
Marybeth Whalen’s second book intrigued me from the moment I learned of the premise: Women who compare their lives to other women. It’s human nature at its most basic level, at least for suburban housewives today and perhaps it’s always been so. Ariel has three sons, a husband who travels, and has just moved into the home of her dreams in an upscale neighborhood. Between the antics of her sons and running a home, she can’t even seem to get the unpacking done.
When her neighbor Justine—practically...more
When her neighbor Justine—practically...more
If you're avoid "Christian fiction" because you worry it'll be a sermon rather than an engrossing narrative, read "She Makes It Look Easy," which takes on the age-old theme of other people's grass being greener in a fresh and unflinching way. Justine and Ariel are two very different women whose lives intertwine when they become neighbors. Their accidental and uneven friendship illustrates the winding path that our choices can take--and how faith influences those choices in surprisingly subtle wa...more
It’s a picture straight of Southern Living, but with a plot straight out of the heart of America’s hometown.
Ariel and Justine are two women living in the same neighborhood and as I read their parallel and intersecting story threads I found my heart thoroughly entrenched in the “behind the scenes” details of these two women’s lives.
We become who we truly are behind closed doors, where no one can observe us. There is such a complexity of that in “She Makes it Look Easy”. I crawled deep into the c...more
Ariel and Justine are two women living in the same neighborhood and as I read their parallel and intersecting story threads I found my heart thoroughly entrenched in the “behind the scenes” details of these two women’s lives.
We become who we truly are behind closed doors, where no one can observe us. There is such a complexity of that in “She Makes it Look Easy”. I crawled deep into the c...more
I've discovered I'm not a fan of multiple first person points of view.
This book did draw me in, the author did well showing how women think and how our desire to look put-together can trap us. Our value is deeper than the outside.
A great message and really made me think. Though, the big "sin" Justine had was more vanilla than I assumed it would be, but that's just me.
The end was a little abrupt, I would have liked to see more of what happened with Tom and Justine in order for it to come full ci...more
This book did draw me in, the author did well showing how women think and how our desire to look put-together can trap us. Our value is deeper than the outside.
A great message and really made me think. Though, the big "sin" Justine had was more vanilla than I assumed it would be, but that's just me.
The end was a little abrupt, I would have liked to see more of what happened with Tom and Justine in order for it to come full ci...more
I'm somewhere between it's okay and I liked it on this title, the first I've read by Whalen. I liked the story enough to keep going and not want to put it down...but wavered about the characters. It was unclear how the author wanted the players to be viewed. Justine seems to have it all together with her organization and beautiful home...but maybe she just make it look easy when it's anything but that. This was my first Christian fiction title and in that regard, I respected the lack of overprea...more
I read several of Marybeth Whalens blog posts at Proverbs 31 Ministries blog. I remember that it was one of her posts that sensitized me on the usage of the 'i' and 'I' in sentences although in that blog she didn't actually giving an English lesson.
She makes it look easy is a story of two women. One of them seems to have everything under control. She is the woman whose house is organised, the woman who wears make up to go swimming, the woman who is in perfect shape, the woman who her kids are we...more
She makes it look easy is a story of two women. One of them seems to have everything under control. She is the woman whose house is organised, the woman who wears make up to go swimming, the woman who is in perfect shape, the woman who her kids are we...more
My negative impression of this book is on a personal level. I love the author's writing style! It's humorous(laugh out loud funny) at times, despite the seriousness of the topics. I am really excited to someday read her first book, The Mailbox.
I never thought that saying I connected with a character could be a bad thing, but unfortunately it was in this case. While some women struggle with reading romance books, this is the kind of book I struggle with. I have to work really hard at keeping nega...more
I never thought that saying I connected with a character could be a bad thing, but unfortunately it was in this case. While some women struggle with reading romance books, this is the kind of book I struggle with. I have to work really hard at keeping nega...more
I wholeheartedly enjoyed this fast read. The story was very relatable.
The story is about Ariel, a mother of 3 young children who moves into her dream neighborhood and meets the perfect neighbor, Justine. The story is told through the two women's narratives. The two become friends and Ariel eagerly tries to be just like Justine, the "perfect" housewife, before finding that Justine is is not what she seems. Don't we all know a woman who pretends to have it all together, who is, in fact, shockingl...more
The story is about Ariel, a mother of 3 young children who moves into her dream neighborhood and meets the perfect neighbor, Justine. The story is told through the two women's narratives. The two become friends and Ariel eagerly tries to be just like Justine, the "perfect" housewife, before finding that Justine is is not what she seems. Don't we all know a woman who pretends to have it all together, who is, in fact, shockingl...more
Let me start this review with one word...superb. The writing, the storyline, everything. There's probably no telling how many times this story has played out in it's entirety in real life, which in and of itself, is quite scary among Christian circles. It's a story that will always stick out in mind as a gentle reminder that "the grass is not always greener on the other side."
I couldn't help but think of myself standing in front of a mirror and finding Ariel's reflection looking back at me. Ther...more
I couldn't help but think of myself standing in front of a mirror and finding Ariel's reflection looking back at me. Ther...more
Ariel Baxter feels everything is falling into place. She and her husband have a new house in a beautiful, well to do neighborhood, and her photography business is on its way up. But with her husband constantly working, her kids driving her a little crazy, and the domestic life not all she thought it would be, Ariel starts to question if they made the right decision moving away from their friendly neighborhood. But when Justine Miller, all-star mother, housewife, and neighbor, befriends Ariel, sh...more
I really liked this book. It was very timely for the area that I live in. Everybody looks perfect on the outside but we never know what it going on on the inside. The reason I gave 3 stars instead of 4 stars is that the prologue never did really tie into the story line. I think that this would be a good bookclub book because of the issues that it deals with. I look forward to her writing more and getting more experience. I think Marybeth Whalen's books are only going to get better.
This book really made me think about how people can be led into temptation and how choices that you make affect others. It is not how God meant for us to be in this life but shows that He can work even in a flawed world. Unfortunately, bad stuff happens even in Christian circles. I thought Marybeth Whalen did a wonderful job writing about the problems of women in their relationships with each other and their families and their need for true and honest friendship in their lives.
The story is very compelling, and it rang true on many levels.
With the rise of social media, we are even more prone to think "She has it all together", "look at her life", but there often is more than meets the eye.
It is unfortunate that the last chapters are a little too long: the conclusion of the story becomes evident long before the story ends, so the last chapters seem to never end.
A pity, for the novel would have been more compelling I kept a little shorter.
With the rise of social media, we are even more prone to think "She has it all together", "look at her life", but there often is more than meets the eye.
It is unfortunate that the last chapters are a little too long: the conclusion of the story becomes evident long before the story ends, so the last chapters seem to never end.
A pity, for the novel would have been more compelling I kept a little shorter.
It's like Desperate Housewives, but in the real world with real consequences. Lysa TerKeurst's from Provers 31 Ministries review says it best: "Oh how subtly sin can tangle its way into lives. A masterfully written story with a warning every woman should read and heed." In a culture with media full of fairy tales, true love, and soulmates, we need to remember that Prince Charming is as much a fantasy as dragons.
This is my favorite novel by Marybeth Whalen. Haven't we all compared ourselves to others who seem to have it all? I know I am guilty of this and many times I have found out that the grass is not always greener in someone else's yard. Ariel finds that you must make your friends for yourself, not listening to what others may say about the women in your neighborhood. A good story about accepting yourself and others.
great insight into the lives of surburban housewives. I found myself identifying with the Ariel character with her insecurities about not being "perfect". Even the "perfect" character, Justine, states that we all have a little Eve in us--still wanting more, and, of course, she has a secret in her perfect life. There were also some interesting takes on marriage throughout the plot line.
I devoured this book, though it haunted me. Whalen has an uncanny ability to capture the mind of a woman and reveal how thoughts can become devastating actions. Her characters are spot-on real, so much so I wanted to yell at them! I loved that this story moved in the direction it did, as it served as a beautiful cautionary tale. Excellent writing, page turning story.
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Marybeth Whalen is a member of the Proverbs 31 Ministries writing team and a regular contributor to their daily devotions, which reach over 350,000 people each day. Her first novel, The Mailbox, was released in June 2010. Her next novel, She Makes It Look Easy, was released in June 2011. Additionally, she serves as director of She Reads, Proverbs 31 Ministries’ fiction division. Marybeth is the wi...more
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Jan 11, 2013 07:08am